1.31.2010

In The Empath, chick didn't know she was a wolf. In Enemy Lover, woman wanted and nearly succeeded in killing her draicaron. Now, in Immortal Wolf, the complications just keep getting more chaotic.

Emily has always been blessed with the gift of healing. Until recently. A year ago, her goddess came to her in a dream and told her there is a balance between life and death. Since then, the touch that once healed now only kills. Now cursed, she is meant to be put to death by the Kallan, the only Draicon capable of killing his own kind without punishment or penalty.

The immortal Kallan is Raphael. We first met him in the previous book. He is Damian's brother in heart.

The further complication? Knowing her death is near, Emily cries out telepathically for her mate. And finds him. He tells her his name is Amant. She tells him her name is Erin.

You can guess the situation.

I should have mentioned these in the prior blogs of this series, since it happens in every book, but the author just loves to have the characters notice something or understand something... and we, as readers, have no idea what it meant. Over and over again. From computers, to eye color, to fur color, to ... just weird random moments.

What grates even more, but in a better way, is how these stories are built up as if there's no possible way the charcters can overcome the obstacle. Then *bam* the answer is there. Simple enough. No farfetched, crazy schemes, but at the same time, you never suspect it to be the way out.

This book expressed exactly that. Emily, cursed as she is, last born of the pure Draicon, but birthed by a mother that abandoned the pack. The smallest detail of her existence made the difference.

And I wanted to slap the hell out of the book for being so aptly named.

"All the cabins are free. A little musty maybe, but you guys remember how to clean."

"That's what females are for," Damian said with a straight face, and then he laughed at Emily's scowl. "Don't tell my mate," he added.

1.30.2010

A heroine into WoW, cosplay, and her own My'Place' page adorned with fairies and top friends being werewolves. She's got a blackberry and salivates over news of the newest e-book reader. When she spots an Xbox and Playstation with a copy of Assassin's Creed, she screams 'SWEET!'

Assassins's Creed was such an awesome game. Though part two was even better!

As the story progresses her t-shirts went from 'Textually Active' to Nirvana to a black vintage Star Wars tee. She even likes Nickelback. Which I take hell for by everyone around me.

This one was so much better that the first book, The Empath. It gets going rather quickly. As it should, since it actually began in book one when Jamie poisoned Damian after he killed her brother, took her virginity and then disappeared.

One misunderstanding after another has Damian doing somersaults trying get his dracaira to trust him. They even go on a date where they scare the hell out of some people on a vampire tour. And they go dancing. Where Damian proves he's completely slacking on technology. He can text! And he knows the lingo!! More than I actually do. LoL

I actually didn't think I was all that involved with this story. Until the family dinner. When Jamie broke down and finally relived her childhood, I teared up. Her bastard uncle decapitated her cat in front of her, then for the first time allowed her to eat at the family table with the rest of them. Where they joyfully fed her her own damned pet. After she never wanted family or meat ever again.

1.28.2010

Eli sat at the bar, expecting nothing much. Then walks in Ty. Green eyes. Halter top. No bra. Tight jeans and combat boots. In a pinch, his dream girl.

He gets her back to his place where she tries to drug him. But Eli - a mist shapeshifter - is too observant to be duped. So Ty falls back to plan B... sex. Mistake number one. Hours later, both are faking sleep in the dark. Then Ty slips from his bed and starts ransacking his living room, looking for god knows what. In mist form, Eli follows, watching every move she makes. Suddenly Ty whips around, eyes straight on him. She grabs up a can of aerosal and blows him a couple feet back, demanding he shift and show himself.

So a little bit of shifting and kung fu ass kicking later, Ty's out the door and on her way back to headquarters. Eli is left trying to figure out who she was and how she knew what the hell he was. Meanwhile, Ty is left with the jitters, and has to explain to three very protective 'brothers' (teammates in her Falcon Mercenary Group) what has her so off. Which she does. Mistake number two.

As it is, Tyana's brother Damiano was working with Eli when whatever happened turned them into shifters. But while Eli and, supposedly, his men have taken control of their new powers, D is losing his mind over his lack of control over his. Ty, with her remaining companions/brothers: Mad Dog and Jonah, trying to figure out what Eli knows and how to get that intelligence for themselves.

I guess, 'hey, how do you that?' was too simple, eh?

Her brothers are great. She's closest with D (Damiano)... then Mad Dog is the oldest, more of the fatherly older sibling type.. and then Jonah is their leader.

Finally, another book where I can't stop saying good stuff about it! Yum Yum Yum. Loved it! Fast paced, a lot of action, even more emotion, but easily followed. Every character found in a way to the heart. Each team is so loyal and protective one another. And yet, Eli and Ty are both strong souls who have overcome lonely pasts. Both were thrown away by their families and have no one else to trust but their teams; their brothers.

It was so heart felt, when Ty comes to face her feelings and she admits she doesn't know if she loves Eli, doesn't know if she *can* love anyone outside her team. But she needs him. Having their relationship go from kicking each others' ass to having Eli go through the motions of realizing Ty is his equal. She gets what he's coming from. Their way of life is perfectly matched. And then the need to beat her becomes the need to protect her. Sex stops being sex. And finally, when the walls break, intimacy is actually shared between them.

*sigh*

Love, language, knives, guns, intel, computer hacking, cross country flights just to take a break. Oh so many goodies!

Easily makes my top reads of 2010. Joining Wolf in Waiting and Eternally.

1.26.2010

Every book I read from Samhaim leads me to another. Gotta love those added excerpts at the end. I first came across this one some time ago. Can't remember how but I do recall the trailer being a major turn off. But the excerpt was so, SO, good.

Alexa Wells finds herself half naked on stage of a strip club with no idea how she got there, or even who she is. Commence the ass kicking!

Seriously, you do not want to screw with his woman, half werewolf. Super strength and favors knives and crossbows. The action was rather fast paced, and there are a lot of characters which makes things a tad confusing. Throw in the witches, vampires, and her part-time alpha who leads a pack of bounty hunters and ta-dah! you've got chaos. Not too forget a forgotten mate with a psycho alpha of his own to worry about.

All good though. Until chapter 22 (If I remember correctly) when all hell emerges and we find ourselves right back at the goddamn beginning. I totally felt a kick in the gut on that won.

Best part though is the final chapter and epilogue. Make sure you put on your girly narrator voice - much like Bella in Twilight - for the ultimate cheesy effect.

1.25.2010

This was a simple story. Boy meets girl. Boy claims girl. And somehow they have to make two lives become one while boy has self loathing issues because his mother hates werewolves.. even though she married one and gave birth to one.

The best part of this was the language. Finally, people who curse as much as I do!

We first met Dylan in book one as he saved Abigail from a bastard of an alpha. He soon became involved with Cindy, the Red Rock pack's doctor, so you can imagine my surprise to learn that book three, Sanctuary's Price, was his story. And that it revolved around he and another female, too.

Joe and Brynn's tale lacked the excitement that books one and three share. Actually Joe and Brynn are better background characters. They were great in this one.

Sasha is a witch's apprentice. But when her mentor is killed, and she herself is traumatized to the core by sadistic werewolves, she's not really feeling all safe and at home even in Red Rock.

As a favor to Gavin, and since Cindy and he are no longer clicking, Dylan helps comfort Sasha in her time of need. He's not one of the strong, but neither is he a weak wolf. Being mid-pack, he has the urge to protect without exuding scary vibes that Keith and Joe do.

***

I loved this one. It was way better than the second book, Sanctuary Lost, and actually better than the first too. Although I'd prefer Keith over Dylan. I like the badass beta. Even Joe's hard on for blowing up shit beats the midpack pup. But... book three's the best so far.

Oh, and doesn't the cover resemble Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prince Jr from like.. 'I Know What You Did Last Summer'?? That boy has a long neck!

1.23.2010

What's great about these books is that each is a continuation of the last. More characters are added but none are ever forgotten or pushed too far in the background.

What's not so great about them is that although the woman are considered strong, at least by the men around them, you're never really convinced of it. They spend the entire time crying, shaking, hiding, and so on. The hell that rains down on them truly screws them up.

In Sanctuary Lost, Brynn is dealing with the torture she endured at the hands of her sister's former alpha. Saved by Joe, with the help of Keith and Abby, she's now a human in a town of wolves. And, feeling helpless and vulnerable, she decides she wants to petition Gavin to become a werewolf herself.

This one took a bit longer than the last to get me hooked. It wasn't until Brynn was changed and we followed along with her adjustment to her wolf that the story actually got interesting enough that I didn't want to put it down. But good enough that I'm still craving the next in the series.

"He'd help her. He'd teach her. And if he couldn't show her how to stand up for herself - at least he'd stand up for her."

After the prequels Becoming and the first Little Things story, you get to this, the story of Keith as a grown man. He is awesomeness all rolled into a wolfish ball, serving as Gavin's beta.

His best line comes in the very beginning, when he shows up to save the day. "She is safe" he tells Dylan. "She's with me."

Cocky self awareness. He knows he's bad ass.

***

Abigail spent an afternoon with her friend Dylan and some of their pals. There she meets Dylan's friend Allen who hits on her and she politely evades his advances. Shortly after she's attacked by a werwolf and turned. Comes to find out Dylan is also a werewolf. Allen is his prick of an alpha. And now, Allen wants her in his pack.

Even though Dylan is considered low in pack ranking he helps Abigail escape to Red Rock, a sanctuary for werewolves led by Gavin Hamilton. Now, even though she's survived Allen, the problem now is that she has to keep surviving.

1.21.2010

Becoming is the first prequel to Cry Sanctuary (the story of Keith and Abigail). Set forty years before in fact.

In this, Keith is only seven years old. But the story itself centers on Samantha, a twent-six year old woman who's been turned into a werewolf. Living with Keith's family after surviving the hells of her former alpha, she is introduced to Gavin, the alpha of her new pack.

Gavin is a sweetheart. To Keith. To Samantha. To everyone. He even survives meeting her rich papa. The story only goes so far.. basically until Sam lets Gavin know that she's claimed him. Even though she's not ready to actually seal the deal, that doesn't make him any less hers.

1.20.2010

A week ago, Nicolas was baling hay on his ranch when a wave of grief suddenly slammed into him. Sorting out the thoughts, following their trail, he found the source - his mate - the missing empath of their Draicon pack. Margaret.

Now he must find her, convince her that she is one of them, and prepare her to be the killer she is destined to be.

Of course, by the end, he'll realize just what a sacrifice it all was to turn a woman of gentility and healing into a cold killer.

I liked it. Plain. Simple. Nicolas was a much better character than Maggie with more depth and harsher pains. Maggie just bored me. I don't think the veterinarian profession and 'bring harm to none' outlook on life helped her much either.

Big Bad Wolf is the story of Graham Winters, Alpha of his pack, who is bored to tears with the women in his life. He's had them all. Werewolves and vampires alike. But never a human. Never wanted one. Never would. What he wants now, is his mate. Which he finds in Melissa, a human kindergarten teacher. Now he must convince Missy that she is his mate while in the meantime, his cousin, Curtis, is plotting to take Graham's place in the pack, using every werewolf tradition he can find against him.

I'll be damned. The big bad wolf is a big bad barbarian.

If the grunting of one word sentences during sex isn't enough, it's the complete caveman mentality that Missy is going to sit where he tells her, live where he tells her, and speak as he tells her. And we're still on the first date!..if it can be called even that.

In reality, he had no intention of ever asking her to move in with him again. She'd figure it out for herself after their first cub was born."

Excuse me? I honestly didn't know how to feel about the guy. I'm all for the possessive, 'mine', outlook.. but that's a bit much.

Then when- finally - Missy gets to talk and voice her wonder at how after being acquainted with each other for 6 weeks and after walking down the aisle beside each other at their friends' wedding, that he suddenly notices her existence now and to the point where he won't let her out of the room.. Graham gets a little bitty wake up call.

Still confounded on why a claimed and pregnant female was required to participate in a matehunt.. but okay...

And who the heck did Logan take down during the mate hunt? Who got Samantha? These things I wanna know!

1.19.2010

Yep. In this one, Nick assigns Mark and Teya to be partners in a sensitive task. But he also has other reasons for this partnership. Mark has had it bad for Teya since high school, but he's never been able to take his animal - the lion - while Teya is amazing as a cheetah.

At the same time, Teya has been crushing on Mark, the sexy, mysterious older guy for the same amount of time. But both are convinced that they don't exist to the other person.

Throw in the fact that Teya isn't initiated... that is, hasn't had sex with a male Sentinel... her powers aren't at their full potential. It's a kill two birds with one stone kinda story...

And it chafed the skin. The way this one was written made me want to scream. The sentences are so long and drawn out.. I couldn't make heads or tails of what was happening at times. Enough with the commas. Use a period once and a while for hell's sake!

James Riley, once known as James Leveau, is a werewolf (former alpha), and has spent the last twenty-two years protecting his only child from the dangers of the world. Even those from her own people, for Alex is half wolf and half human. For that reason there are those who want her dead, lest she taint the blood of the future wolves.

But years have passed and there are few females left. Now, those that don't want her dead want her as their mate.

Enter Joshua Striker, a protector of James' former pack, with his brothers Isaiah, Micah, Levi, and Simon. (always gotta love the Biblical theme) He has been sent by their new alpha (James' brother) to bring her home.

Again, the female of this book had my hand tingling with the urge to backhand her pretty face... one more word about coffee.. just one more.. and *POP*... Seriously, when you've got raging wolves on your tail, you don't stop for coffee!

This is as much James' story as Alexandra's. Going into his past, learning of the death of his mate and his abandoning of the pack really brings him to the front of the tale. I anxiously await Isaiah's story though. As Joshua's older brother, it was meant to be his duty to step up as the protector of the pack. But he didn't. And the epilogue did well in shedding some light on his emotions.

Joshua was great. The strong, honorable type that fights his animal instincts to ensure Alex gets a proper choice. Though... when Alex and her father get reunited after a two days struggle to get to the pack lands, and Joshua pulls her back from going to James, I didn't know whether to melt or punch him.

1.16.2010

I can admit it, I read this one because of its cover. Obviously it's about a tortured soul, right?

It didn't disappoint either.

Cullen's been in love with Sarah for what feels like forever. Sadly, the 'wallet chick' has no clue he exists except for the mutterings of his order every week when he comes to the diner. When she's attacked one night by the mate of a guy she's rumored to have gone to bed with, Cullen is forced to defend her and take her to his home until she heals.

Had a difficult time with Sarah. She didn't make sense to me. For a woman pissed off that she's been labeled the town whore, she certainly didn't waste much time offering sex as an act of gratitude for all Cullen does for her.

But Cullen was a gem. Another story of a man with great brothers and even a loving mother who doesn't let anybody peck on her chicks. Oh, yeah.. I should mention they were all eagle shapeshifters. That should be said.

Total failure in doing my homework on this one. Did *not* realize it was an erotic novel. Thankfully, it wasn't so bad. Didn't completely turn off my libido like the books I've read by Dawn Thompson.

Sierra and Jack are three days away from their wedding and a marriage arranged by their parents. In a world where sex is freely given and marriage is for life, neither are looking forward to the day of their damnation. So... Sierra's friend and Jack's cousin arrange a special night for them both at a sex club, where they meet, and bond, neither of them knowing of the other's true identity.

1.15.2010

So many wonderful things were in Return of the Wolf. Karen Whiddon is quickly becoming one of those authors whose books I'll always be waiting for.

Fishing. Soulmates. Shapeshifters. Reincarnation. All yays!

Memphis wins a weekend of fishing and Gideon, a wolf shapeshifter is assigned as her guide. This was a story of two people, destined mates, finding one another and knowing from the very first moment their eyes met that they were meant to be together. Instantly random facts about one another find their way into each other's minds. From favorite colors to favorite foods to just different tidbits that make a person unique.

From there, faced with his mate, Gideon reveals the truth about himself. And Memphis is forced to accept it or leave him forever. She knows he's her soulmate. That they've lived before and something went wrong. Despite her fears of him, she wants desperately to make everything right. If only Gideon would believe...

The story opens with Guy caged in a zoo. His prison. Where he was sent as punishment for killing his pack's alpha thirty years ago. Now, he's given the chance for freedom. He must assist a woman named Kayla in securing a little girl called Brianna, the lone survivor of her pack's attack and deliver the girl to a man named Dell.

Kayla is a Draicon (a magical werewolf), as is Guy, but she has turned her back on it since her mother betrayed her and tossed her out of her life. And then her own pack sent her away. Now she needs the money she'll earn in delivering Brianna to save her business.

The moment she catches Guy's sent, Kayla is drawn to him and she doesn't know why. However, Guy does. It's a sweet story of two lonely souls finding comfort in one another. A bit of self sacrifice concludes with a very nice happily ever after.

Jet is human. A human, made from a wolf. She is sent under orders to capture the leader of the Sentinels, Nick Carter, which she accomplishes successfully.

But Nick's wolf is strong. And Jet finds herself drawn to the animal inside him. And to the man.

I liked this book, purely because of Jet. Her nature is simple. She doesn't always understand the ways of humans and her way of speech portrays such. She acts on instinct, playful and protective. She reminded me of a puppy.

1.14.2010

While this story stays closer to the Hollywood ideas of werewolves, with the forcing of Change during the full moon, Blackout was still good. Basically, it's just the moment in time when a male werewolf meets his mate for the first time. Nothing more. Nothing less.

1.13.2010

How do I begin to talk about this book? There are no words to express how much I enjoyed it.

Noel Duprey was the standard against which all others were measured. Yes, I like that sentence and no, it didn't hurt me at all that it was said repeatedly in the book. As the newest heir to the St Clair corporation, a corporation run by and for werewolves, it becomes his duty to find the traitor that's selling and leaking company secrets.

Victoria St Clair is the bottom of the pack because of what she is - an anthromorph. She can't Change and is therefore stuck in her human form. And she prefers it that way. All of her life other werewolves have turned their back on her, humiliating her, harrassing her. Even at work, her record is the poorest of the poor. She has been passed over for promotion again and again while her work has been stolen by coworkers and superiors.

But it was to her that Noel was sent.

And all I can give you is this - that going in, the truths you find will becomes lies in the end.

1.12.2010

This one had a bit of a twist that the others lacked, for the Guardian, Rogan, has already found his Destined Mate. And lost her.

Reincarnated as Alison Blair, she has come back into his life. She knows what he is. She knows all about the Guardians as she works for them. With them and the seers that serve them.

Rogan is the only Guardian of the series that actual had reason to have qualms in being with his Destined Mate. He's found her once before, and she fled from him. She ran instead of choosing to love him despite her fears and died before she had the chance to change her mind. Now, back in his world, five hundred years later, Rogan can't bring himself to trust that she won't do it again. Nor, trust himself to survive losing her again.

I didn't care much for the end. Of all of them, Rogan was the least of which that deserved such an ending. Santos should have had this ending. Even Kieran having it would have made more sense. Hell, Alison should have had Julie's fate. So a little switch-a-roo there and all would be well.

1.11.2010

The beginning of this book had a grip on me from the very first few lines. Erin, a psychic, is running, running from the feeling of being watched. She's felt so ever since she was nearly killed by a bus some time ago when a man saved her life only to disappear. Today, though, the feeling is stronger, and she's convinced she's being stalked.

Five years ago, Erin received a letter from her birth mother warning her that on her thirtieth birthday, her real father would seek her out and steal her powers. So she has some real reason to be afraid.

She runs into a little shop, and hides in the back, where her eyes settle on a ivory knife. She touches the weapon and secures it in her hand, ready for what she knows is coming. A vision. Suddenly she's on a ship in a raging storm, centuries ago, where a man named Santos is brutally killed with the weapon. The vision changes, and he is alive, swordfighting another man in modern day San Diego. In both visions, he sees her, too, and attempts to communicate.

Sequel to Eternally, Nevermore has basically the same plot. Differences being, Erin is half-witch/half-demon and Santos is (obviously) a Spaniard... which means I had to endure the first few pages, and some others, having Spanish screamed at me. And I can't stand the Spanish language. Nails on a chalkboard.

It was good. The first was better. And why are the women always getting stabbed in these books? And who the heck was the mystery guy that saved her life...twice?

"What is going on? I died. I remember dying. I told you I loved you and then I died. So why am I alive? Why am I in pain? And what the hell happened to my big sacrificial exit line?"

Ripped from the world of Lisa Renee Jones' Knights of White world, with only minor changes, Eternally is just as good as those it mirrors.

Kieran is a Guardian in our world, fighter against the demons that tear through the portals of other planes of existence. It has been centuries since his mortal death and he has survived victorious in countless battles alone, without a Mate.Without the strengths one would give him. Without the powers... and without the distraction.

So when he finds his Destined Mate in one Julie Carpenter, his reluctance, and her disbelief in the existence of demons and the threat against her, becomes the main event. When a shared kiss atop his extravagant home only deepens their connection when the visions of one another's pasts play out in each other's minds. Kieran discovers Julie's ex-husband has run away with her money, car, and her best friend while Julie relives Kieran's death upon a 16th century battlefield, where, as a Knight to Queen Mary, Kieran is struck down by his wife's lover.

THIS is a book I would have written. I loved every word out of Kieran's mouth, and the demon was beautifully sadistic and just... awesome. The best I've read this year!

1.10.2010

Centuries before the time of the Sons of Destiny, a female shapeshifter became the leader of the people of the Shifting Plains...

Tava Ell Var never really knew her mother, but she did know her tragic fate at the hands of a band of cruel shapeshifters-a history set down by Tava's father as a warning about life on the Shifting Plains. But after her father is murdered, Tava encounters a Shifterai warband fighting to rid the Plains of the terrorizing bandits

Shifterai leader Kodan Sin Siin is sympathetic to Tava's suffering, but he's determined to bring the wary young woman to the Plains. Because he knows her secret: She, like he and his men, is a shapeshifter. Once she joins them, he knows that she will see for herself the true fate that awaits her on the Plains, and most of all, lose her fear of his people. And, in time, he knows she will find her place is in their fight-and by his side.

The cover of this book left me in a sense of bewilderment. What's with the female sex appeal? What kind of audience is she going for here?

Moving on... I can't help but to love the world of Jean Johnson. She's so descriptive with the ways of the people, the cultures and their surroundings, it's either real or it should be.

The story of Tava, a Shifterai, is based in the homeland of Amara (Trevan's bride from the book, The Cat). I loved Amara's world even then, as it was the only land with true rules for courtship and had the highest standards to judge their people. Perfect for it's own series.

JJ does a wonderful job with scenes of intimacy, but this one was a bit shocking... Not only do we get semi-scientific instructions on pleasuring oneself, phone sex without the phone, but also, what amounts to borderline bestiality.

1.08.2010

So after nearly four years of owning this book, and it's successors, I finally picked it up to read. I suppose this little challenge isn't too bad.

It's a girl's coming of age story, which I more or less stay away from. The first hundred pages only served to strengthen my avoidance of the kind. Once Rhia left for her Bestowing in which she would learn to channel her animal spirit guide, the Crow, and left her childhood love, Arcus, behind things picked up a little. And got a tad better when she met Marek, a man whose link to his Wolf spirit has become somewhat uncontrollable since the death of his young wife and unborn child two years ago.

Alanka, though - the half sister of Rhia's half brothers, and also a wolf - was my favorite by far. Nilo and Lycas, the brothers, earned a close second. Especially once war came and my heart strings were finally and officially tugged.

But in a series where the heroine hears the approaching call of death, it's best that I don't get attached. Because *anyone* could be next.

If you took the first half of this book, about two hundred forty plus pages, and shoved them through the nearest shredder, you might have been left with a pretty good book.

Unprepared to take up the role as guardian to an ancient stone and Alpha to their pack, Gideon escapes to the USA for some peace. Only to be attacked by wolves sent by his cousin, Malachi. Wounded and bleeding, he is drawn by a strange yet familiar scent to the back door of a bookstore, and is found by Carly while still in his wolf form.

Despite the constant, unnecessary descriptions constantly lagging the story, the true detail that kept chafing my skin was the although Gideon was a *Scottish* werewolf, there was nothing *Scottish* about him.

And I do love my Scots' accents and terms. Too bad there wasn't a single bloody one.

1.07.2010

When I first read the synopsis for Wolf Signs and the one for Wolf Flight... Flight sounded better.

I was wrong. While this one was good, Tad's girliness was a turn off. He wanted true love. He wanted forever. And he wouldn't do anything with anyone that wasn't his soulmate. Which is all good and all until it turns into exactly what Tad turned it into. Blind , whining foolishness.

Missy is an Omega on the run from her pack. Her brother-in-law has killed her husband of an arranged marriage and now wants her for himself. She meets up with Tad, a childhood friend who's been crushing on her since he was sixteen, in a pure business related situation. What transpires from there is anything but.

And Tad, who's been needing the trigger to fully grasp the wolf inside him, winds up in his first death match.

1.06.2010

Robyn's brother pulls out of their ski trip last minute, and she's just fine with that. Although she's deaf, she can take care of herself, and gods help the one that insists otherwise.

Her first night at the cabin, she visits a newly constructed sauna, and soon after has a startling introduction to TJ and his older brother, Keil. The two are the definition of awesome. From TJ's goofy, inappropriate comments to Keil's first thrown punch in response to them.

Keil and TJ, both werewolves, have escaped to the cabin for a week of peace before Keil is expected to challenge Jack, another wolf, to be Alpha of their pack. The last thing either expected was to find a female - a female that doesn't even know she's a wolf.

Despite my hesitations with this one, based on freaky warnings posted on Amazon, once TJ and Keil entered the picture in the beginning of chapter two it was all good from there. Iz happy.

I suppose I'm just way too much into crime dramas. I say this because this book was more like something I'd watch on tv then ever actually think of reading. But I did. And I liked it. I liked it a lot.

Trevor is SWAT. Skye is not. *dorky chuckle* Skye is a K9 cop with Bella as a partner.She's also a Valkyrie. The latest case is a serial rapist/killer who they just can't seem to catch. When the guy manages a bullet in Trevor's neck, Skye is compelled to save his life, and not just because it's her 'job'. Time passes in the way of days and even weeks, leaving the build-up of a relationship closer to reality than most books I've read. The casual yet consistent attempts Trevor makes to get Skye to just have coffee with him had me tickled. Finally, when they do give in to the physical attration they both share, some of Skye's powers seep into Trevor, the power to condemn to death by simply his voice.

I didn't expect the ending, which was rather good. The Epilogue, though, is not worth reading, and is actually the worst part of the story. It left a bad taste in my mouth.

1.04.2010

With a servant as narrarator, 'Bargain...' is the story of newly made lord of Grey Moraine and his meeting and wedding of a young woman whom he becomes instantly smitten with. A fine story it was, one that I could imagine being passed along generations much as it said it was. Blown away though, when Nettie went all Sixth Sense on me. Still, I would have preferred a different POV. Didn't care much for Nettie's perspective.

Birthright

If the first was meant to be a Cinderella tale, then this was surely Aladdin. Elrick was a mage, and a seller of maps. Which Arasa needed if she were to make the journey that would make clear once and for all just who, whether it be herself or her twin sister, had been the firstborn child, thus the heir to the throne.

Have to wonder why the most obvious of solutions ended up being a big 'omg' moment though.

Unmasking

A young woman stumbles upon a stranger at a cave pool, and suddenly she is the prime candidate to bring down a spy.

This one had little romance, although more than the first... well sorta, in a roundabout way. I haven't read Carol Berg's work since high school. It was nice making a return visit.

Huntress Moon

To get her ailing mother the treatment she needs, Zarah agrees to become a slave and is sent as a spy to her new master.

This is, quite honestly, the best of the book. Not only is it fairly obvious from the get-go that the author isn't planning on holding anything back but this was the only actual love story of the bunch. Magic, psychics, and werewolves. Hands down, the winner.

In a war amongst demons, those wishing to atone and those who just want to be the evil that they are, Archer feels a new possession is about to happen. When he finds Sera to be that target, the first woman target in ages, he knows it's a sign that things are changing. And so he goes to her, and warns her that darkness is coming. Once it's done, he'll return for her.

If the demon that possesses her is a djinn, he must destroy her. If teshuva, then she will be recruited into their army, to forever fight the eternal good v evil fight, in all of its shades of gray glory.

This book is a long one, which was felt. But also goes to hint than anything could happen. Which did. Death and betrayal. Which I was *so* not ready for, neither of them.

1.03.2010

Felicity is a girl who wants the fairy tale, the happily ever after, and she wants it with her Viking.

And so, with her aunt's deck of tarot cards and special candle, she gives herself a reading, and is immediately transferred back in time to 1658, where she meets William Rollo, a man who has one of the worst families one could ask for.

Injured at the age of seven when his elder brother forced Will's new pony into a mad rush, Will has a bad right knee, and walks with a cane that houses a hidden weapon. He is a war hero on the side of men who wish to see the rightful king restored to his throne.

Felicity is moon eyed over Will, but he wants to make it quite clear that he is no woman's man. He's never been with a woman and never wants to be wed.

Still, Felicity's non-stop talking and bold acts towards intimacy eventually win him over- which leaves, Jamie, his very jealous older brother who wants nothing more than to destroy everything Will ever loved, on a one minded course to get rid of Felicity, and his brother, no matter the cost.

Oh my, but this was good! Well, except for that one minor event with the webcams. Could have lived without that. Seriously, where intimacy is concerned, technology should just stay the hell away.

In Dark Lies we enter a world of lycan CSI. An Otherworldly team consisting of a lycan, a vampire, and a witch.. and a few others are on the case of a serial rapist that is much more than he seems. Or she seems. *raised eyebrow* Apparently a continuation from book one, which focused on the vampire and because of such I chose to skip it, the case furthers, and even in the end, is still not over. Raves, panda branded ecstasy pills, and goat marked gang members are just some of the oddities that keep the book even more interesting as the lycan, Jace, tries to figure out just what secrets Tala is hiding. For she, too, is more than she appears.

And how can you not like a book whose characters' secret code word is 'I have the new season of The X-Files if you want to watch it.'

1.02.2010

Different from the books in Devoti's world, Lured tells the story of Annie, a woman who doesn't know she's been bitten by a werewolf.

Answering an ad online after a mysterious inhaler ends up at her office with medicine inside that appears to help with her 'infection', Annie is led to a cabin where she meets Theo, the local alpha who... is hunting with a rifle...

Although his presence at the cabin was never fully explained, the story continues as the two are drawn to one another, captured yet again, and ultimately bring about the freedom of other victims lured to the cabin.

1.01.2010

Return to the world of the Nine Kingdoms with New York Times bestselling author Lynn Kurland as a new evil, and a new passion, emerges.

Sarah's brother has embraced the dark arts, vowing to destroy the Nine Kingdoms, and she doesn't have the power to stop him. Now she must risk everything to thwart his plans, even though she fears the quest will reveal the secret she's kept all her life.

After seeing his entire family slain by magic, Ruithneadh swore never to use his power again. But when Sarah pleads for his help, he's thrust back into a life of enchantments and peril, and a quest capable of unraveling the entire fabric of the Nine Kingdoms.

Ruithneadh lives alone in the mountains outside the village, his magic forced deep down inside himself, locked and hidden away. After the destruction of his family by his own father's hands when he himself was just ten years old, Ruith wants nothing to do with magic or people.

Sarah is the magicless daughter of the village witch. She wants nothing more than to escape her home and run away to make her own simple, peaceful life. Then one day her brother steals away the last of her mother's potions and her entire savings. He then reveals that he is off to destroy the world.

Led by duty to do just the opposite, Sarah runs to Ruith for help, believing in the rumors that he is a centuries old mage more powerful than most out there. What she finds is a man much younger, cloaked in darkness, and who's so handsome she doesn't even recognize him when she finally sees his face.

As they journey together, collecting person after person whom her brother, Daniel, has stolen their powers from, they continue to hide their secrets from one another - all along building a bond and friendship with what truths are allowed. In the end of Tapestry of Spells, all lies come to the surface and as they flee, yet another foe takes them captive. Sarah is planned to be sold. Ruith is confined.